ISC for Bladder retention

Symptoms and treatments
1

Hi all, new to this board but I’m 20yr+ sufferer thus far. Started RRMS but my Consultant, nurse & myself all think I’m moving into secondary as mobility & bladder issues are getting progressively worse as the months tick by

Started out with bladder urgency & frequency, but the biggest challenge at the moment is bladder retention, I get scanned every 3 month or so by Continence clinic and PVR is around 250-300ml. I rarely pass more than 100-200ml normally (including when I first get up on a morning) and can sometimes not even go for a wee for 6 hours while at work, by which time when I am leaving, it feels like there is a brick in my abdomen, not painful … just so uncomfortable that I can hardly stand up straight.
Intake is about 2ltr per day

I actually do most of my weeing lying sideways with a urine bottle, apply gentle pressure/stimulation to my bladder (I can get another 200ml out this way most times)

With all this in mind, I tried ICS on advice of my nurse
Not enjoyable or particularly painful, just very weird feeling and not pleasant but do-able was my assessment of the whole ordeal (Coloplast Speedicath)
I was planning on doing this just once a day when I got up, so I did this for 3 days. On the 3rd day I had the dreadful foul smelling, stinging of a UTI. 1 day later they were concerned I was coming into stage 1 Sepsis so I had 3 days in hospital on IV AB. (In hindsight I think most of my problems were the fact that any rise in core temp puts me bedbound basically due to exacerbated mobility issues)

Needless to say I’d rather not have one of those again, I cleaned properly and followed all the guidance. That was 7 months ago and I haven’t cathed since. I just put up with the discomfort but I know deep down I am risking other complications with a permanently full bladder.
I do feel I need to pick this up again as its ruling my life at the moment.

My main questions are these

  1. Is it not a good idea to cath just once a day, my thinking is although I will be comfy for 3-4 hours, any bacteria I do push inside will sit there for up to 24 hours as I slowly fill up to unhealthy levels again
  2. Is Cathing something I probably need to embrace fully and commit to 4 or 5 times a day, will this reduce the risk of UTI’s
  3. I feel full / bloated / uncomfortable in my bladder for 10 hours + per day, the only relief is when lying down on the sofa which I do most of the time from 1pm to bedtime (sitting up straight is unbearable). I am thinking I need to man up and embrace this is just a fact of my life, my normal bladder function has gone !
  4. Has anyone tried Cranberry tablets or long term low dose Macrobid etc to prevent UTI’s, do they do any good
    Thanks

David

2

Hi David.
I had bladder retention/urgency for a few years and as my mobility worsend, more and more accidents occurred.

So an SPC was the best way to go, after 5 months of an in-dwelling catheter proved too uncomfortable.

SPCs are much better…no worrying about where and when to empty.

Boudsx

1 Like
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Dear David, this sounds very similar to the problems my husband experienced a year ago. After using ICS for about 3 months he was rushed to hospital with a UTI and sepsis. He spent 3 days there with very heavy antibiotics which affected his gut. After this he decided not to use ICS again even though he was being pushed to do so my his doctor and the Bladder and Bowel nurses. I decided to do some research by myself and came up with the ideal solution - The Queens Square Bladder Stimulator. Can be purchased online for about £50. Used before urinating, it ensures that the
amount of urine retained in the bladder is greatly reduced! Before using it my husband had a urine retention of around 400, afterwards only 150. So it works. Can really recommend this and the funny thing is that it is not known by most doctors even though it was developed in 1979 by leading neurologists in a London Hospital. Good Luck!

4

Hi Carin, wow! That is something new to us.
Thankyou for the info.
Boudsx